


Welcome to the Family

by TheRev28



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Multi, Self-Insert, already completed on FFN, posting a revised edition to AO3
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-17
Updated: 2018-03-18
Packaged: 2019-04-03 19:46:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14003352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRev28/pseuds/TheRev28
Summary: After a very unfortunate series of events, I find myself hip deep in the Mass Effect Universe. Why could I possibly be here? How can one teenager and an unexpected companion possibly have an effect in Mass Effect? I hope I find out soon.





	1. Well Shit

**Author's Note:**

> So this is a story I wrote over 6 years ago in late 2011 over on FFN (back when ME self-inserts were all the rage). I wasn't around AO3 at the time, which is why I didn't also post it here. Recently, I've gone back to revise this story for some unknowable reason, and I figured I'd take advantage of this opportunity to finally cross-post it to AO3. 
> 
> This whole story has already been written. Hell, it's been *completed* since around May 2012. I'm simply revising and editing the story to bring it up to a standard I'm happy with. Once this story has been fully posted, I'll start posting the sequel, and eventually I'll start posting new chapters of said sequel to both FFN and AO3 simultaneously.
> 
> If you're just joining me for the first time, welcome! I hope you enjoy it and decide to stick around. If you've stumbled upon this and remember reading the original, welcome back! It's nice to see you again. So without further ado, enjoy!

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Beep! Bee—

I groggily slap down on my alarm clock's snooze button, eyeing the offending piece of technology with some distaste. I don’t know why I thought waking up at 5:00 AM was a good idea, hunting trip or no. But, ‘tis the season, and I don’t want to let this extra day off go to waste. With a groan, I finally roll out of bed and head to the small bathroom that connects to my room. It feels nice to have my own private bathroom again after a few months stuck with dorm showers at Vandy. It lets me take as long of showers as I want.

After a nice, hot shower, I finally get out and shave what little stubble I had. As I carefully glide the blades across my skin, I take some time to really look at myself in the mirror. People told me that college would change my appearance, but I guess a few months isn’t quite long enough for that to happen. Same old brown hair, same old blue eyes, same old beanpole of a body. Maybe I should hit the gym more when I go back.

Anywho, enough wasting time. These deer aren’t gonna hunt themselves. I scarf down a quick breakfast, pack some supplies for later, and grab my rifle, pistol, and Bowie knife.

By about 9:00, I reach the hunting ground. For the next eight hours, I see absolutely nothing worth taking a shot at. The only creatures that passed my stand were some squirrels and a single doe. By the time the sun begins to set, I feel thoroughly disheartened. Maybe tomorrow will be better, though. That’s the one thought I keep repeating to myself as I set up camp for the night. The sounds of the forest lull me to sleep when I eventually lie down for bed.

The silence wakes me up. After hours of the constant background noise of bugs, animals, the wind, and everything else in the woods, their absence startles me. It’s such a complete and utter lack of sound that for a moment, I really do think I’ve gone deaf. Then I open my eyes and realize that something is very wrong. My tent isn’t above me. Not even the sky is above me. Instead, a vast grey expanse hangs above me, going off to the horizon in any direction I look. The trees are gone. The grass is gone. Everything is gone, replaced by pure, unending greyness.

I stand up, feeling very disoriented with no real frame of reference to use. What the hell is going on? Where am I? Why am I here?

YOU ARE NEEDED ELSEWHERE.

The temperature around me drops, and a chill runs down my spine. That voice… that was not a voice that anything should be able to make. For one, it didn’t disturb the air molecules around me, instead reverberating through my very bones. For two, it sounded less like a voice and more like a titanic crypt door closing deep underground.

I turn around, and my body freezes in place. That… is that?

YES.

A seven-foot tall figure stands there, wearing a hooded robe that devours any light that gets near it. A single, bony hand holds a scythe that cuts the air molecules around it without moving. From the hood, two blue points of light sit within empty eye sockets.

That is the face of Death.

A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU, THOUGH I WISH IT WERE UNDER BETTER CIRCUMSTANCES.

Better circumstances? But, but… the only time you would ever see the Grim Reaper is when you die. There _are_ no other circumstances.

QUITE THE CONTRARY. I AM NOT HERE TO USHER YOUR IMMORTAL SOUL ANYWHERE. IN FACT, I AM HERE TO USHER YOUR VERY MORTAL BODY SOMEWHERE ELSE.

“Wait… have you been reading my thoughts?” I ask, finally gaining control of my mouth.

IT MAKES THINGS EASIER WHEN PEOPLE FORGET TO SPEAK, SUCH AS YOURSELF.

Ok, I’m just not gonna think about the implications of that. I have other implications to think of. “So you mean I’m not dead? Then why are you here? Or, what am I doing here?”

THERE IS NOT A UNIVERSE ANYWHERE WHERE DYLAN OWENS HAS DIED, Death says. HOWEVER, THERE _IS_ A UNIVERSE WHERE YOU ARE NEEDED. I AM HERE TO ESCORT YOU THERE.

“Wh-what do you mean I’m needed?” I ask. “And… another universe?”

IT IS QUITE SIMPLE, WHILE ALSO BEING MORE COMPLICATED THAN YOU COULD POSSIBLY IMAGINE. A glowing white portal appears in the air next to him. SIMPLY STEP THROUGH THIS PORTAL, AND MOST OF YOUR QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED.

“Wait, that’s it? You just expect me to walk through there? Just like that? I don’t want to go wherever it is that leads! I want to go home!”

I AM AFRAID THAT IS QUITE IMPOSSIBLE, Death says.

“But, but… but you brought me here in the first place. Can’t you just send me back?”

IT IS NOT THAT SIMPLE. THERE IS NO GOING BACK. THE ONLY WAY FORWARD IS THROUGH HERE. He motions to the portal.

“And if I refuse?” I ask, trying to keep the quiver from my voice.

THEN YOU _WILL_ DIE HERE. He pauses, apparently considering his next words. I TRULY AM SORRY. I WISH THERE WERE ANOTHER WAY.

The portal moves towards me. Before I can react, it swallows me, and my entire world goes white. The white slowly fades, leaving nothing in its wake. I lose consciousness.

My eyes shoot open. I’m breathing heavily, and sweat runs down my forehead. I’m lying down. I’m back in my sleeping bag. The roof of the tent is above me. All my stuff is where I left it when I went to sleep.

Holy shit, that was some fucked up dream. I have no idea what caused that, but I really hope it never happens again; dreaming of Death isn’t exactly a fun experience. I take a few more minutes of just lying on the ground, trying to calm down. Once I feel more under control, I get up and begin preparing for day two of this hunting trip. Exiting the tent, I check on my guns before anything else.

Those aren’t my guns…. My rifle and pistol have been replaced by two weapons that look tantalizingly familiar, but my brain doesn’t want to work at full capacity right now. The rifle looks like a bullpup configuration, only without the magazine. It also has a hole in the stock for the thumb instead of a full grip. Why does this rifle look so familiar? I look at the pistol, hoping it might jog my memory. It looks kinda bulky, and instead of a plain grip, it’s got a weird hand guard configuration.

Wait a minute… a few synapses in my brain fire off in recognition. As soon as the rest of my brain figures out what I’m looking at, I pass out.

####################

My consciousness returns with a jolt. An explosion interrupts the silence, and my eyes shoot open. Just as quickly, they squeeze shut as the single loudest, most god-awful noise reverberates through my entire existence. I curl into the fetal position, covering my ears and trying to stop the pain. It’s ultimately a futile gesture; the noise feels like it’s coming from inside my own head.

As quickly as it began, the sound recedes. The silence that follows is one of the most pure feelings of relief and joy I’ve ever felt. Even though it only lasted for ten seconds at most, it felt like decades.

I once again open my eyes, but I don’t make any move to get up from the fetal position I curled into. Instead, I lie there, trying to make sense of everything that my senses tell me. The sky above me is a deep, blood red. Smoke billows into the air near the horizon. Off in the distance, multiple large, insectoid-looking ships hang in the sky.

What was that thing Sherlock Holmes says? Something about eliminating options and whatever’s left must be true no matter how improbable? Because the only option left in my mind is pretty fucking improbable.

I’m on Eden Prime during Sovereign’s attack.

I’m in Mass Effect.

My mind goes blank as it takes on the herculean task of understanding what the fuck is going on. Every time it concludes I must be dreaming, so I pinch myself. Nothing happens. I slap myself once just to make sure. Still nothing. So if I’m not dreaming… if I’m really here… how?

…

Death. He said there’s a universe where I’m needed. But that was just a dream, right? I woke up from that…. But I woke up from that only to find myself here. Did that really happen? It must have. Why, though? How the fuck could I actually be of any help here? I’m 19 fucking years old! I’m a college student! And for engineering, at that - not even anything groundbreaking like quantum physics. There are probably thousands - _millions_ of people just like me out there. How can _I_ make a difference?

Well, if I’m already here, and if I want to make a difference, I suppose my best bet is trying to find Shepard. Shit, I wonder what they’ll be like in real life. Male or female? Default appearance or a custom one? Backstory? In any case, I at least have a game plan.

I finally stand up and glance around, taking stock of my situation. I’m still wearing the hunting garb I had on yesterday, although my orange vest has been replaced by some kind of metallic harness strapped around my torso. Is this a shield generator? God, I sure hope so; I don’t have any armor, so shields are a must. Once I finish a personal pat down, I turn towards the weapons. My trusty old hunting rifle has been replaced by a Mattock, and my pistol replaced with a Carnifex. Well… I guess it’s not _too_ different from what I had before.

Unfortunately, I don’t exactly have a holster for the Carnifex or a strap for the Mattock. I guess I’ll put the Carnifex in my pocket? As I bring it towards my hip, it pulls towards the bottom of the shield harness. Curious, I move it up and let go. The gun stays there. Well hot damn, I guess there’s a fancy magnetic strip holster type thing.

With that taken care of, I grab the Mattock and do one final check of the campsite. One final thing catches my eye: my Bowie knife, still in its sheath. Wow… that actually makes me feel a lot better, for some reason. Other than the clothes I'm wearing, that knife is the only thing left of my old life. I strap the knife back on and feel just a little bit safer than I did before.

Now I just need to figure out where the fuck to go. In the absence of any real idea, it seems like a smart idea to head towards the smoke off in the distance. Then I realize just how idiotic that thought seems. Sure, Dylan, walk _towards_ the fire and bad stuff. I sigh to myself. No sense trying to rationalize anything anymore, so I might as well get to walking.

Negotiating through the woods doesn’t take much effort, so my mind begins to wander a little. Though it’s mostly just going “Holy shit what the fuck is happening I don’t like this” over and over. One thought does manage to stand out: namely how fortunate it is that I had just re-played Mass Effect 1 and 2 back home. Mass Effect 3 was slated to come out in a few months, and I wanted to refresh myself on the series a little bit. And beyond that, I had probably finished both games at least 3 times each. God, I hope I manage to remember enough shit.

After maybe 15 minutes of hiking through the woods, I come to an area that feels vaguely familiar. A small cliff drops down six or seven feet to a little mini-canyon, maybe a dried river bed. Directly ahead of me, up against the far canyon wall, stand a few Dragon’s Teeth. They’re currently retracted, but even just knowing what they’re capable of sends a little shiver down my spine. Off to my right I see what I’m fairly certain is the dig site. Which means to my left is where Shepard saves Ashley.

Hot damn, I got lucky as hell. If I keep my head down, this could be a perfect ambush spot. I settle in to wait, hoping that Shepard and company haven’t already passed through.

A few minutes later, I hear mechanical clicking noises. Peeking over the edge of the cliff, I see a group of geth drag a man towards the Dragon’s Teeth. So that’s what a geth looks like in person. I won’t lie, it’s… kind of scary. The troopers probably stand a good few inches taller than my 5’11”, and they certainly bulk much larger than me.

Shit, I want to do something, anything to try saving this man, but I can’t. If I shoot at them now, I lose my ambush, and I don’t think I can take a group of geth on by myself. That, and I’m… I’m afraid. Seeing the geth in person, seeing the Dragon’s Teeth, seeing all the smoke and fire off in the distance… it terrifies me.

The sound of running off to my left catches my attention. I think that might be Ashley. I shift my position just in time to see her burst into the clearing, chased by two geth drones. True to the cutscene, she trips but still manages to destroy the drones chasing her with practised ease.

The sound of metal sliding on metal, followed by a stomach-churning wet noise pulls my attention back to the geth from before. The sight almost makes me throw up.

They impaled him. The man from before hangs lifelessly, impaled through the torso by the Dragon’s Teeth. Blood runs down the shiny metal, forever stained by that man’s death. I swallow the bile that sits in my throat, readying myself for what comes next.

The geth finally notice Ashley, who has pressed up against a rock, assault rifle in hand. As they pass by my position on the cliff, I get to a knee and take aim at the center of mass, not wanting to risk missing a headshot. My hands shake, so I take a few deep breaths in an attempt to steel my nerves.

Here goes nothing.

I pull the trigger. Some higher power must be on my side because the tiny shard of metal pierces the metal skin of the geth. Wow, that recoil wasn’t bad at all; no worse than my old hunting rifle. A fraction of a second after the shot hits, both geth whip around to face me. Instinctively, I shoot twice more, thankfully doing enough damage to destroy the first geth. Its buddy, however, raises its pulse rifle with machine-like speed and precision and begins to pepper my position with weapon fire. Even moving as fast as I can, I still feel a few rounds ping against my shields before I drop into cover.

Holy shit, that was entirely too close. I think I feel my heart trying to beat out of my chest. I don't have any real kind of monitor for my shield levels, but I'm pretty sure they got close to breaking. Ok, have to remember that this shield generator kinda sucks. Luckily, since I killed one, that's the only geth left. Also luckily, the geth seems to have shifted its focus entirely to me, leaving it easy prey for Ashley.

After the gunfire stops, I peek out from behind my cover. Instead of a destroyed geth lying in a heap on the ground, I see it floating in the air, almost eye level with me. Once again acting on instinct, I shoot it three times. I must have hit something important because a small explosion rips apart the machine’s torso. Only once the debris fall to the ground do I realize the implication of a floating geth.

Shepard and Kaidan must be here. I look down to where Ashley had been, seeing her standing with another woman and a powerfully built man. I guess that means femShep. Still don’t know what she looks like, though, since she has a helmet on at the moment. Oh, wait, they’re looking at me, too. Not wanting to look like a threat, I put my hands up and attack the Mattock to the mag strip on the back of the shield harness. I make my way over towards them, somehow managing to slide down the cliff face without falling on _my_ face.

Once I reach the three marines, an awkward silence hangs in the air for a few seconds. That is, until Ashley breaks it.

“Who are you and what are you doing in this area?” she asks. Ok, well that wasn’t quite what I expected.

“I guess that’s one way to greet the guy who saved your ass,” my mouth says, completely bypassing any filter from my brain. Fuck, that’s not what I wanted my first impression to be.

“And I guess that’s one way to talk to a marine who could kick your ass,” she says, putting a hand on her hip. She doesn’t do anything overtly threatening, but I still find myself intimidated a little. My eyes widen slightly.

“Ok, yeah, fair point, well played.” She smirks very briefly at my response before putting her marine face back on.

“Alright you two, settle down,” Shepard says. And there’s Jennifer Hale. God, such a good voice. She turns towards me. “Sir, whoever you are, thanks for the help. What’s your name?”

“Dylan, ma’am,” I say. “Dylan Owens.” I smile a little bit, not only because I want to appear friendly, but also because holy shit I’m talking to Commander Shepard.

“Well, Mr. Owens, I’ll admit I’m very happy to see a civilian survivor. Commander Jennifer Shepard at your service.”


	2. Ow, My Head

Commander Jennifer Shepard takes off her helmet and extends her hand. As we shake hands, I get my first look real look at her. Dirty blonde hair pulled back into a short ponytail, lightly tanned skin with a fair complexion, brown eyes. Her face has a slight roundness to it that gives her a softer appearance than one would expect from a career military officer. She’s pretty.

“It’s nice to meet you, Commander,” I say, completing the introduction. “Though, please, just call me Dylan.”

“Alright, Dylan, then you can just call me Shepard.” She pauses for a moment then looks at Kaidan and Ashley. “This is Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, and you’ve already met Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams.” She says that last bit with a tiny smirk.

I shake both of their hands. “Nice to meet both of you.” I pause for a moment, trying to think of what to say next. I need some way to convince them to let me tag along. Maybe I can play the scared civilian card? Ask to tag along for safety? Welp, it’s the only idea I can come up with on short notice.

“Comm— Shepard, what did you mean earlier about being glad to see a civilian survivor?” I ask, trying to inject a little concern and some fear into my voice.

Her expression darkens. “You’re the first one we’ve come across.”

“Shit.” I look down and bring a hand up to wipe away an invisible tear, hoping that I manage to sell it. After a moment, I look back up at her and do my best to look determined. “Shepard, can I come with you? Wherever you are is probably the safest place on Eden Prime right now, and I really want a chance to get revenge on those metal bastards for what they're doing here. You saw what I could do with a rifle.”

Please say yes, please say yes, please say yes. She stares at me, expression fairly neutral; though, one hand idly moves up to touch her nose. 

“Alright, you can come with us.” Yes! “But be careful. You don't have any armor and that shield generator looks like a piece of crap. You seem like a good shot with that Mattock, so I want you to stay back and pick off any geth that the three of us miss.”

“Of course. I have no desire to get shot at any more than necessary,” I say with a little smile.

The others smirk back before replacing their helmets and starting off. Shepard and, surprisingly, Kaidan take the lead on the way to the dig site while Ashley hangs back to walk by me. That’s odd… you’d think that with Ash being a pure soldier she’d be up front. Though maybe Shepard's a soldier. Actually, I don't know what class she is. I saw some biotics being used during my ambush, but that could have been Kaidan. Now I'm really curious about it.

“So what  _ were _ you doing in this area?” Ashley asks, pulling me back into the moment. “The whole area around the dig site was being patrolled by marines up until very recently.”

Welp, I guess that answers why she hung back. I could tell her a basic form of the truth, but before I can even get a word out, we all hear the classic geth noises: that kind of mechanical clicking and whirring. Oh yeah, I forgot about the geth near the dig sight. Quickly scanning the area, I see a small flat rock with an upward protrusion. Cool, that'll give me a slightly elevated position and some good cover.

Without waiting to see what the others are doing, I sprint over to the rock and get behind the natural cover. Peeking around the rock face, I see that Ashley has moved up while Kaidan has hung back. Shepard is also hanging back a little, but not as much as Kaidan. With a fluid motion, the N7 draws the sniper rifle from her back. Well that partly answers my question about her class: she's either a soldier or an infiltrator.

Before I can speculate any further, the first geth rounds the corner into our field of view. Without any hesitation, Shepard draws a bead on the synthetic's flashlight head and lets a shot off. The report of the shot echoes through the valley, and more geth quickly stream into view. Ok… here goes nothing.

Looks like five geth in total, arranged in a sort of staggered battle line. Ashley shoots towards the one on the far left with some damn accurate bursts of her assault rifle while Kaidan lifts the one next to it with his biotics. That seems like an easy target for me, so I bring my Mattock to bear and give the helpless geth three bullets to the center of mass. That does the trick as the AI goes limp and soon falls to the ground as Kaidan's biotics wear off.

Surveying the battlefield, I see that Ashley has moved on to another geth and that Shepard is keeping another one down with some accurate pistol fire. I'm pretty sure that she's an infiltrator now, and she proves my theory correct when she activates what looks like an overload on the geth. The robot falls over with sparks flying everywhere. Shepard takes this opportunity to put two rounds through its head with her pistol.

Meanwhile, Kaidan conveniently lifts another geth out of cover, providing me with a clear shot once again. A repeat of my previous performance ends with similar results. By my count, there should only be one geth left. I look around just in time to see Ashley finish it off.

Wow, that worked better than I could have hoped for. Kaidan’s biotics sure make things easier. I exit my cover and hurry over to the others, who currently stand around an empty dig site.

“But who moved it? Them or us?” Kaidan asks right as I arrive.

“It doesn’t matter now,” Shepard says. “We need to get to that spaceport ASAP.”

With that, the four of us head up the path that leads to the scientist camp. Wait, shit, isn’t this where we first encounter husks? Oh I really hope none of them have a chance to get close. I have absolutely zero desire to see a husk anywhere within five feet of me.

As we crest the rise, we get our first glimpse of the devastation that happened here. Craters dot the ground, and most of the pre-fab buildings on the far side have taken serious damage. Ahead and off to the left, Dragon’s Teeth stand, fully extended with victims impaled on top. Just as before, a little bile raises in my throat, but it’s not quite as bad this time. The scene isn’t nearly as fresh as before. Besides, those buildings and the Dragon’s Teeth, the area is fairly open with very little cover.

"This looks like a good spot for an ambush,” Kaidan says. “Everyone stay on your toes.”

As if on cue, the metallic sound of the Dragon’s Teeth retracting reverberates through the destroyed camp.The first husk reaches the ground and stands up with a sort of awkward grace. The red sky reflects off the creature's metallic skin, making the husk itself look blood red. This fact only serves to enhance the appearance of the blue cybernetics that shine through. The whole effect is rather frightening.

"My god! What are those?" Ashley asks, actually sounding fairly scared.

"I think that’s what's left of the science team," I say, trying to point them in the right direction. As I say this, the other three husks get to their feet while the first one begins stiltedly running towards us.

I raise my Mattock, aiming at the charging husk, but I can’t bring myself to pull the trigger. Whatever this thing is now, it used to be a human being, and that thought stops me dead in my tracks. In my mind, shooting the geth was no different than hunting an animal. I'm fully aware that they both have some kind of intelligence, but, to me at least, they lack sapience: that key factor that allows judgment. I mean, sure, the geth use cold hard logic, but that's not quite the same thing.

These husks, however, were humans. While I'm fully aware that they're basically mindless zombies now, the fact that they even  _ were _ human causes me to hesitate.

A rough shove interrupts my internal struggles. I let out a surprised yelp, and as I fall, I see Shepard firing at something from my vacated spot. Before I can think about anything else, my head impacts the ground, and the entire world goes white. 

HELLO.

Oh fuck, really? Am I going to die?

YES.

… Wait, seriously? Just like that? I’m gonna die because I got shoved too hard?

OH, I DIDN’T MEAN NOW.

But you just said I was going to die!

WELL OF COURSE. EVERYONE DOES EVENTUALLY. AT THE MOMENT, I AM HERE TO SEE HOW YOU ARE ACCLIMATIZING TO YOUR NEW SITUATION. OH, AND TO PICK UP THE TURIAN.

Turian? Do you mean Nihlus? 

No response. I guess he left.

“Dylan! Are you alright? Wake up!”

“I think you pushed him a little too hard, Shepard.”

I groan in response. I keep my eyes squeezed shut because otherwise it feels like the pressure in my head will make them fly out. That hurt a lot. I really hope that didn’t cause a concussion. I feel two sets of hands grab my arms and haul me off the ground and then support me by their shoulders. After a moment, I manage to open my eyes, only to be met by the sight of Ashley and Shepard on either side of me.

Now that my feet are under me again, I try to stand on my own. It’s a little wobbly for a moment, but I manage to keep my balance. I gingerly touch the back of my head, feeling for any blood. Thankfully, there’s just hair.

“I’m sorry, Dylan,” Shepard says, looking just a teeny bit embarrassed. “You froze up when that thing charged you, and I had to get you out of the way before I could take a shot.” She pauses for a moment, her expression turning more quizzical. “You alright? You were fine against the geth but completely froze against those things.”

“I don’t really know,” I say. “I guess those things used to be human, and I’ve never shot at real live human before.”

“I understand, but you said it yourself: those things  _ used _ to be human. Whatever they are now, they’re just husks of their former selves. There’s no humanity left.”

“I guess…. I’ll try to remember that if we run into any more. Oh, and thank you. For saving me.”

“Of course,” she says, smiling. “Now let’s get going. We need to get to the spaceport.”

I nod, and we make our way over to the opposite end of the science camp. As we approach the two buildings on that side, Kaidan walks out of the one on the right. If I remember right, I think those two scientists are in the left building.

“This building was empty,” Kaidan says, gesturing to the one he just exited. “And the left one was locked.”

“Can you  _ un _ lock it?” Shepard asks.

“Already tried, Shepard. One of the scientists must have sealed it up because it has one of the most complicated firewalls I’ve ever encountered.”

“Then let’s just move on. We don’t have time to waste.”

As we crest the ridge that separates the science camp from the spaceport, a single gunshot echoes through the small valley. Shit, that must have been Nihlus. Unfortunately, I don’t have much time to dwell on that fact.

A boom pierces the air, quickly followed by an incredibly low mechanical note. Lightning dances through the clouds as the four of us look towards the sky just in time to see the single biggest object I’ve seen in my life ascend towards space.

Sovereign.

“The element zero core must be massive for it to be able to take off from a planet!” Kaidan says, barely making himself heard above the noise. The rest of us stand silent, gazing in awe at Sovereign’s ascent, like the hand of a wrathful god leaving the scene of its most recent smiting.

The sound of retracting metal spikes reminds us of the task at hand.

A small group of geth along with two husks. Even though the approach to the spaceport has relatively little cover, it works both ways. Our weapons are much more accurate at these longer ranges, so we dispatch the enemies with relative ease. I let the others deal with the husks, not quite trusting myself to pull the trigger against them yet.

With the path forward clear, we make our way down towards the spaceport. At the top of the ramp to the first platform, we find Nihlus’ body. It’s a very gruesome sight. Since he was shot in the back of the head, most of his face has been replaced by the exit wound. Grey matter and dark blue blood covers the surrounding area.

This time, I can’t stop myself; I rush over to the edge of the platform and throw up. After a few heaves, I regain control, and after a few shaky breaths, I return to the others. They all look sympathetic, but I can’t help but feel a bit ashamed that I couldn’t control myself. Kaidan opens his mouth to say something, but a crash interrupts him.

Shepard, Kaidan, and Ashley immediately draw their weapons and aim them at the source of the noise: a dockworker. 

“D-don’t shoot! I’m human!” he says, putting his hands up. Even standing still, he’s shaking like a leaf. Can’t say I blame him, though; anyone would be scared if three marines pointed weapons at them.

“Well be more careful next time. We almost shot you,” Shepard says, lowering her weapon. “What were you doing behind those crates, anyway?”

“I was hiding from those damn synthetics!”

“That’s understandable. Did you see what happened to this turian?”

"Umm…I didn't actually see anything,” he says, continuing when he sees Shepard’s expression, “b-but I overheard a conversation he had with another turian! The first one was just sort of standing there when another one came up. I guess they knew each other because the first one dropped his guard, and the second one shot him right in the head. The first one called him Saren, I think."

“Why does that name sound familiar?” Kaidan asks, mostly to himself.

“We’ll worry about that later,” Shepard says. She turns back to the dockworker. “Do you know where the beacon is?”

"That other turian, Saren, he took it to the next dock,” the man says. “Just go down the ramp and take the tram."

"Thank you. That should be everything we need."

"Hold up Shepard," Ashley says before we can leave. She turns toward the man, presumably to ask him one last question. "How did you manage to get behind the crates before the geth found you?"

Oh damn, I forgot about this part. He looks rather uncomfortable now. I would too if I had to admit what he does.

"Well you see," he starts, "I was kind of already back there. It's just that… I was working so hard, and, well, I… umm… sort of… maybe… went back there to… umm… kind of… take a nap."

All four of us are silent after the dockworker's cowardly admission. Ashley looks absolutely disgusted while both Shepard and Kaidan just look disappointed. All I can do is shake my head slowly. It's really rather pathetic. Finally, Ashley finds her voice. This should be good.

"You were taking a nap?" She starts off really quietly, and that's almost scarier than her just yelling. "You survived while good marines died because you were napping?" Ahh, there's the yelling that would make her drill sergeant proud. "Tell me right now why I shouldn't—"

"That's enough, Chief," Shepard interrupts, effectively ending Ashley's tirade. "He's not worth it. Right now, we need to stop Saren." Ashley glares at him for another second before abruptly turning away and walking towards the tram. The rest of us quickly follow.

The path to the tram is a completely straight shot for about a hundred yards with very little cover. Despite the presence of half a dozen geth, we make short work of them. Well, I say “we” when I really mean Shepard. Sniper rifle in hand, she picked off every enemy with a single shot.

“Holy shit, Shepard. That’s some damn good shooting,” I say. She simply smirks before leading us on to the tram. 

Once she presses the button, I settle in for a boring ride. I lean against the railing with my arms crossed and close my eyes to see if I can get a quick nap in. This has been a very tiring day. First I wake up in the Mass Effect universe. Then I find Shepard and spend the rest of the time in and out of active combat. Contrary to popular belief, fighting a small army of synthetics is not the best thing to do when you have asthma. I’m holding together, though, and I hope this leaves a favorable impression. I  _ really _ want to stay with Shepard after this — mostly because I have no other options.

“So you never answered my question earlier,” Ashley says. Jeez, I just wanted a tiny nap, is that too much to ask for?

I sigh and open my eyes, seeing Ashley directly in front of me with her arms crossed. I doubt answering 100% honestly would go over well, but I might as well answer as truthfully as I can.

“I was out on a hunting trip,” I say. “Woke up this morning to a red sky and that god-awful noise. Then I noticed the fire and the ships in the distance. It scared the shit out of me, so I gathered my weapons and headed to the dig site, figuring there’d be plenty of soldiers there guarding it. And that’s when we ran into each other.”

“Talk about a hell of a way to start the day,” she says, softening her expression a bit. I guess my explanation was good enough for her. “I never did thank you for the help back there, so… thanks.”

D’aww, is she extending an olive branch? I smile. “Of course, Chief. Happy I could help.”

“We’re approaching the end,” Shepard calls from the front of the tram. Welp, so much for my nap. Oh well, at least we got a tiny breather. I push off the railing and move towards the front.

The tram stops, and we immediately see the first bomb. Wow, it’s… a lot bigger than it was in the game. The countdown reads just over five minutes.

“Shepard, please tell me you can defuse a bomb,” I say, suddenly worried about what he answer might be. In the game, all you had to do was press a button, and Shepard would start defusing. But this is real life. What if she doesn't know how? Can Kaidan do it? 

"Don't worry, Dylan; N7 devotes an entire month to explosives,” she says. “I could probably do this in my sleep."

“Please don’t,” I say quickly. 

She just smirks and gets to work. Seven seconds later, she stands up, and the readout on the bomb is blank. Then she turns towards us. “Let’s go. My omni-tool is picking up three more explosives.”

The four of us tear through the spaceport with (ironically) machine-like efficiency. Between Shepard’s sniper, Kaidan’s biotics, Ashley’s assault rifle, and my Mattock, the geth have a hard time standing in our way. Shepard must have really excelled at the bomb defusal training because she disarms each one within ten seconds. With two minutes still left on the timer, she defuses the final bomb. The last few geth also go down quickly enough.

With the coast finally clear, we finally come to stand in front of the Prothean beacon. It’s… pretty damn awe-inspiring. The odd green glow surrounding it absolutely radiates this feeling of pure power. It just has a… a  _ presence _ about it that almost feels like it’s distorting space itself.

After a few moments to admire the sight, Shepard and Kaidan walk off a small way, most likely to call the Normandy for a pickup. Ashley and I stay here, still staring at the beacon. She cautiously takes a few steps towards it. 

Wait… that's not supposed to happen. Kaidan's the one who triggers the beacon when Shepard is a woman. Oh shit… Ashley starts to struggle against the pull of the beacon as it gradually draws her nearer against her will. Fuck, Shepard is too far away to help in time!

My legs move without bothering to consult the rest of me. I cover the distance in two strides and grab her around the waist. With all my might, I manage to throw her back away from the beacon, seemingly out of its range of effect. Unfortunately, now  _ I’m _ the one stuck in its pull. No matter how much I struggle, the beacon pulls me closer. It lifts me off my feet, and I have just enough time to realize how absolutely  _ fucked _ I am.

My world goes entirely blank for a moment: no lights, no sounds, no nothing. That quickly ends when a terrible screech/scream resounds through my mind.The all too familiar vision begins to flow across my consciousness. I'm not just seeing this with my eyes; no, this is being burned into the very cells of my entire body. Organics dying, synthetics on a rampage. My nerves light on fire, and I try to scream but nothing comes out. 

With one last horrible shriek, the vision dies, and I slip into unconsciousness.


End file.
